Year || 503 Season || Fall Temp || 35℉ (℃) - 69℉ (℃) Weather || The iron grip of Summer has slowly faded into the gentler Fall embrace. The morning dew frosts over in the early morning hours and melts by the time the sun hits high in the sky. Many of the trees have traded their lush, vivid green for a more suitable array of red and orange hues. But don't blink, for Winter's cold embrace is fast upon Fall's heels.

"Are there lines she's crossing? Should she toe them or touch them with a pole and stay away wholly? But to avoid such a storm he offers, such a taste of life; to withhold herself from the chance to taste starlight, to love satin and silk and swallow pomegranate seeds not yet offered... She should be stronger." — Moira in Small as a wish in a well

Erd and Ard are the spitting images of one another. There is not a single physical flaw in their resemblance, leading to the near impossibility of telling the two apart. Perhaps once you get to know the twin warlocks a little better, you’ll be able to see the tell-tale signs of who is who and be able to distinguish them quite easily. Until then, you’ll be forever guessing, only noticing their outside physicality and take them at face value.

The first thing you may notice about the twins is their build. They are petite, standing at a modest 12.1 hands. Erd and Ard are supple and athletic, their small frames packed with lithe, tightly corded muscle, the Andalusian blood of their father quite prominent despite their mixed heritage. Some may even dare to call the twins ’feminine’, due to the elegant curve of their jawline, the nimbleness of their bodies, or the fluttering of long lashes. It would be wise, of course, to not mention that to either of them, even though they are more than likely used to such teasing. Clearly they are not made for war or battle; small and quick, the brothers rely on their small size and lean stature for evasion and speed as opposed to brute strength.

The warlocks are cloaked in a pelt of freshly fallen snow, not a scar or blemish to be seen upon their person. From the tips of their refined ears downwards they are canvases free of tarnish or color, ivory and brilliant and practically glowing. It is only at their knees that the colors begin to change, their legs from the knees down deepening into a rich, solid grey until it reaches the hardy black of their hooves. The brothers’ muzzles, slim and dainty, are the shared deep grey. Their manes and tales are a woven tapestry of colors; pale greys, deep charcoals, and glistening taupe make up the furled and tousled strands of their hairs. Piercing, frozen turquoise eyes peer out beneath long, black lashes, their stare intense and knowing, depicting an age that seems far greater than their young years.

Their wings are broad and strong, yet proportionate to their frames, large plumes of ivory feathers making up the graceful appendages. They are quick and sure-footed on the ground, yes, but faster in the air; agile and fluid, their small size allowing them to glide effortlessly through the skies and weave through tight spaces.

The only piece of jewelry they wear is a pair of luminous earrings, the small hoops a natural slate grey in color. At night, however, the stone glows a faint blue. These are the only physical keepsakes they have from their homeland of Luminous.

Once you’ve spent enough time around them, you’ll begin to see their most subtle of differences, in facial expressions and individual mannerisms.

Ard carries a troubled aura. His eyes hold a darkness within them, a window to his troubles. The boy is all grievous frowns, frozen turquoise glares, pinned ears and bared teeth. Rarely will he allow anyone other than his brother to see him in a relaxed state. He is a bundle of tension, of terror, his petite body always strung tight as though ready to be struck by a cruel hand, or ready to flee. Whereas Erd carries himself proudly and with confidence, Ard cowers, refusing to make eye contact if not necessary. His pace is an inward shuffle, quick when it needs to be in order to escape prying eyes, but mostly his body is hunched into itself and a slim grey nose pointed down towards the earth, eyes downcast.

Why do we wake ourselves from paradise?
Why do we let it bring our good lives down?

Left with the lingering emotional scars of their past, Ard is reclusive and affrontive and does not share his brother’s fondness for making friends. He lives his life as a selective mute, preferring gestures to words and refuses to speak unless forced, threatened, or in the private company of his brother. When he does talk, his voice is raspy from disuse, and is rarely loud enough to be heard over the talking of others. Struggling with a crippling anxiety of the world around him, Ard finds it difficult to walk among crowded streets or be around too many people for long periods of time. Rarely will he ever be out and about without Erd at his side, and relies heavily upon his brother to be his rock, his guiding light, and the mediator between he and the rest of the world. If ever confronted or challenged with hostility, Ard will more than likely shut down, an after-effect of the treatment the twins received in Luminous. While not officially diagnosed by a healer or a medic, the young warlock suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder.

The first impressions that many have upon first meeting the younger twin is that he is abrasive, rude, and unrelatable. Rarely do many give him the time of day, put off by his tendency to ignore being spoken to and overall brash personality, finding that they do not desire to put in the time to attempt to discover what he is like behind that tough facade.

He is sensitive to the world around him, almost alarmingly so. It is easy for Ard to grow attached, and as such, it is easy for him to get hurt. Neglect and the horrors of war have taught him that to defend himself from pain, he must harden himself from others. Because of this, he rarely lets anyone in, but those that do manage to worm their way past his defences will see a side of Ard that no one could imagine possible.

He laughs, he jokes, and he’s beautifully artistic. Oftentimes Ard will unwind by doodling in the earth, or sketching upon worn parchments using sticks of charcoal. His art ultimately varies on his mood, but oftentimes results in doodles of Erd or the scenery around them, flora and fauna captured beautifully upon paper. The younger warlock carries a mischievous streak, cunning and sly, and teases his brother relentlessly when others aren’t around. He is also loyal, steadfast, and devoted to Erd, his love for his brother paramount and complete.

Also surprising is his pacifist nature. Due to the war in Luminous, Ard detests fighting. He finds war pointless and a loss of precious life, and will disagree with it on nearly any scale. There is no doubt, however, that he would fight to the death to defend Erd, even though he is far from a warrior in both body and mind.

Ard will never seek out a lover, nor will he desire to have a Bonded companion. His brother is his world, and nothing else could even hold a candle to the profound relationship that the two share. Should Erd ever die, it is very likely that Ard would follow; either by heartbreak or his own volition.

What if we're all just sleeping satellites?
Why do we drift so far from home?

Asking Erd is by far your best bet if you wish to learn more about the twin warlocks. Ard would only tilt his head curiously and stare at you as though you had grown two heads. If you were lucky, you would get a grunt of, “Ask Erd.” Erd would laugh but tell you anyway, although you may not receive the entirety of it in truth. His tale would go something like this;

’It’s hard to say when our journey really began, but if you really must know. Ard and I? We were born in a land called Luminous. It’s pretty, I guess, if you like dead forests and cold mountains in a war torn country. Gets its name from the natural luminous stone formations that make up the countryside. They give off a bioluminescent glow when hit by moonlight. The nobles like to mine the stone to make their castles and homes, but, that’s beside the point. There’s something you need to know about Luminous in order to really understand everything; they’re a terribly superstitious lot. Scared of everything they can’t understand, really, but they’re absolutely terrified of magic.

There was a big hunt a hundred years ago or so and the country turned on itself, tearing itself apart to get rid of anyone who carried the blood of mages. Pretty much all of them were killed off.

Anyway. We were born in the middle of winter and cooped up quite a bit for the duration of our younger months. Our parents weren’t around very often after we were weaned, but at least we had each other. That was all that mattered. Spring came around, and we got to finally stretch our little wings and explore the countryside. It was all good fun, though. We lived like typical children. Ard even talked back then, believe it or not. Our parents were proud of us. Even though they weren’t around, they loved us.

As we grew older, we discovered that we could do things that others couldn’t. At first we could only move objects with our minds, but after months practicing, we were able to summon the very elements of nature itself with just a mere thought. It was amazing, but terrifying. Remember how I said that Luminous had a strict ban against magic? Yeah, that law didn’t really do us any favors. Despite that, Ard and I kept practicing our abilities. We wanted to get stronger, even though we were only kids. It was only inevitable that we messed up, though. We got caught. Our parents caught us practicing with fire, and they were horrified. Things… Changed pretty quickly after that. They regarded us like we were monsters, just because we were different.

One day, they left. They just left and never came back. Ard and I were nearly a year old at that point. After that, it was just the two of us. Some of the King’s men came to fetch us soon after our parents abandoned us. They must have told the authorities about our magic. They yelled and cursed us, called us ‘abominations’. We managed to escape capture and hid in the mountains, but, well… It might have been better to just go with them.

By then the civil war was in full swing. The rebels wanted to overthrow the corrupt monarchy, and the monarchy wanted to squish out the rebellion. We had been in hiding for a few weeks when the leader of the rebellion found us. His name was Vreis, but he was no better than the corrupt King. We were both sick from hiding in the snowy mountains with little food, but Ard tried to use his magic to try and scare them off. Vreis and his men immediately knew what we were. They could’ve easily killed us, given that we were practically surrounded by an army and we were sick, but they didn’t. Vreis, he… He gave us an ultimatum. He would let us live despite being warlocks, on the one condition that we served him and fought for his army. If we refused, he would kill us. It was as simple as that. Ard and I didn’t have much of a choice, not if we wanted to live.

We spent the next year and a half honing our magical abilities and fighting in a war that we wanted nothing to do with. Not only did we have to survive the war, but Vreis’ army. They were cruel, manipulative, and twisted, raping and pillaging as they saw fit. We became Vreis’ personal ‘pets’ and we served him in whatever way that he wanted. He particularly liked the sound of Ard’s voice. We knew we wouldn’t survive if we stayed, and so Ard and I began to plan. To make us more powerful, Vreis had ordered his men to find us as much information on magic and elemancy that they could. We read everything that we could obtain, and found a particular spell.

Supposedly, if done correctly, the spell would open up a portal to a new world. It required two skilled magic users; one to mold and shape the portal, and the other to supply the magic ‘reservoir’. Deciding we had nothing left to lose, Ard and I took the chance. In the middle of the night, we snuck from Vreis’ personal tent and tried our luck at opening the portal. It was taxing and took a considerable amount of focus and discipline, all while depleting our magic reserves… But with a bright spark of light, a portal seemed to rip into the very air before us. By then, the rebel camp was aware that we were meddling, and so we did the only thing we could think to do; we jumped in.

Luminous was never our home, not really. Leaving it behind meant nothing to us, not when all that really mattered was each other. Now we’re here, in this world, this Novus, and that’s all that’s to it.’

Active & Parvus Magic

Passive Magic

Bonded

Armor, Outfit, and Accessories

Outfit:
The twins’ outfits are identical. When worn, it is impossible to tell the two warlocks apart.

The outfit is a collection of black and charcoal cloths, crudely stitched and bound together with a dark green hemp cord. Secured with various worn belts, the ensemble nearly resembles a cloak when fastened properly, yet is not long enough to drag upon the ground. A large black hood can be slid over the top of the head, enshrouding their face to an onlooker. Adding to the mystery is a charcoal grey cowl that covers the lower portion of the face, allowing only a sliver of flesh and a flash of turquoise eyes to be seen.

The cloak is slit along the shoulders, allowing for the free movement of the twins’ wings. It is tied loosely together behind the wing joints and along the spine with more dark green hemp cord, keeping it secure and prevents the cloak from slipping or sliding upwards.

Along many of the belts are small pouches, used for carrying various small items.

**Will provide a visual reference ASAP**

Items:
- Pair of luminous stone earrings that glow faintly in the moonlight